RSOE EDIS Event Report

A powerful typhoon bearing down on the northern Japanese island of Hokkaido has forced authorities to order the evacuation of thousands of residents. Thousands of residents in northern Japan have been ordered to evacuate as a powerful typhoon bears down on the island of Hokkaido. Local authorities issued evacuation orders for Nemuro city on the coast and neighbouring areas, as Typhoon Choi-Wan approached from the east, the Hokkaido daily reports. About 170 flights have been cancelled and scores of train services suspended, the paper says. The season’s 23rd typhoon, still several hundred kilometres east of Japan, had maximum sustained winds of 108kph and gusts of 162kph, the Japan Meteorological Agency says.

Powerful Storm in N Japan, Funnel Cloud, Snow and Tropics

If you are located anywhere in central or northern Japan I am sure you have at least noticed its it’s a little (or a lot) windy outside today. Choi-wan a large extra-tropical low and once typhoon east of

IR / VIS SAT

Japan has grew in size in to Thursday morning covering a vast area of the North West Pacific with gale force winds.

Winds up to typhoon strength have already been reported in parts of Hokkaido from this storm. Click here for latest reports. The worst of it will be in the North East Area of the island where the low expected to pass Thursday evening with a pressure below 950hpa and winds up to 162kph.

Prepare to be educated… The Jet Stream is indicated by the arrows but even without it the best satellite to use to spot it is the Water Vapor Imagery, you can see it in the areas of drier air in the upper levels. The Jet is ripping Choi-wan apart today from a tropical to a massive extra-tropical system. Winds already reported up to Typhoon Strength in parts of Hokkaido.

pt 1-2

The tragedy of the Fukushima nuclear plant disaster took place almost three years ago. Since then, radiation has forced thousands out of their homes and led to the deaths of many. It took great effort to prevent the ultimate meltdown of the plant — but are the after effects completely gone? Tokyo says yes; it also claims the government is doing everything it can for those who suffered in the disaster. However, disturbing facts sometimes rise to the surface. To shed a bit of light on the mystery of the Fukushima aftermath, Sophie Shevardnadze talks to the former mayor of one of the disaster-struck cities. Katsutaka Idogawa is on SophieCo today.

The tragedy of the Fukushima nuclear plant disaster took place almost three years ago. Since then, radiation has forced thousands out of their homes and led to the deaths of many. It took great effort to prevent the ultimate meltdown of the plant — but are the after effects completely gone? Tokyo says yes; it also claims the government is doing everything it can for those who suffered in the disaster. However, disturbing facts sometimes rise to the surface. To shed a bit of light on the mystery of the Fukushima aftermath, Sophie Shevardnadze talks to the former mayor of one of the disaster-struck cities. Katsutaka Idogawa is on SophieCo today.

Japan said Friday it would redesign its controversial Antarctic whaling mission in a bid to make it more scientific, after a United Nations court ruled it was a commercial hunt masquerading as research.

The bullish response, which could see harpoon ships back in the Southern Ocean next year, sets Tokyo back on a collision course with environmentalists.

Campaigners had hailed the decision by the International Court of Justice, with hopes that it might herald the end of a practice they view as barbaric.

“We will carry out extensive studies in cooperation with ministries concerned to submit a new research programme by this autumn to the International Whaling Commission (IWC), reflecting the criteria laid out in the verdict,” said Yoshimasa Hayashi, minister of agriculture, forestry and fisheries.

Japan, a member of the IWC, has hunted whales under a loophole allowing for lethal research. It has always maintained that it was intending to prove the whale population was large enough to sustain commercial hunting.

But it never hid the fact that the by-product of whale meat made its way onto menus.

“The verdict confirmed that the (IWC moratorium) is partly aimed at sustainable use of whale resources.

“Following this, our country will firmly maintain its basic policy of conducting whaling for research, on the basis of international law and scientific foundations, to collect scientific data necessary for the regulation of whale resources, and aim for resumption of commercial whaling.”

Hayashi, who had met with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe earlier in the day, confirmed a previous announcement that the 2014-15 hunt in the Southern Ocean would not go ahead.

Last month’s court ruling does not apply to Japan’s two other whaling programmes: a “research” hunt in coastal waters and in the northwestern Pacific, and a much smaller programme that operates along the coast, which is not subject to the international ban.

Japanese officials dine on whale in protest against court ruling

Hundreds of Japanese officials and pro-whaling lobbyists have eaten whale in defiance of a international court ruling that ordered the country to stop its Antarctic whaling program.

By

SBS with AAP

UPDATED 2:05 PM – 16 Apr 2014

The 26th whale meat tasting event in Tokyo was hosted near the nation’s parliament and was attended by lawmakers, officials and pro-whaling lobbyists.

Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi told attendees that the country must protect its whale-eating culture.

“[Japan] has a policy of harvesting and sustainably using the protein source from the ocean, and that is unshakable,” Associated Press quoted Mr Hayashi as saying.

Meanwhile, a lower house MP criticised the arguments against whaling as emotional and not based on reason.

“Japan’s whaling is based on scientific reasons, while counterarguments by anti-whaling groups are emotional, saying they are against the hunts because whales are cute or smart,” the Japan Times reported Shunichi Suzuki of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party as saying.

Japan ‘will continue whaling in Pacific’

Japan has decided to continue its whaling program in the Pacific Ocean, reports say, despite losing a United Nations court case on its other “research” hunt in the Antarctic.

If confirmed, the move will likely spark anger among environmentalists who hailed a ruling in March by the UN’s International Court of Justice (ICJ) that Tokyo’s hunt in the Southern Ocean was a commercial activity disguised as science.

Japan has exploited a loophole in a 1986 moratorium that allowed it to conduct lethal research on the mammals, but has openly admitted their meat makes its way onto dinner tables.

Campaigners urged Tokyo to follow the spirit of the ruling, and not just its letter, which specifically referred to Japan’s hunt in the Antarctic, not its other research scheme in the northwest Pacific or its smaller coastal program.

But after the ICJ verdict, a government review has said the Pacific hunt should press ahead, public broadcaster NHK and Kyodo News Agency reported on Friday.

The review suggests the Pacific mission should reduce its catch and focus more on carrying out research that does not involve catching whales.

A few days before the 3rd anniversary of one of the world’s worst nuclear accidents, tens of thousands of anti-nuclear protesters gathered at the Hibiya Park in Tokyo. This was their way of reminding the world about the incident at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant and the dangers of Japan’s insistence on relying on nuclear energy for its power needs.

The demonstration was also an expression of their anger and disappointment at the the nuclear industry and the administration of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who has been pushing for the restart of the country’s 50 nuclear reactors that have been offline due to safety concerns and the strong anti-nuclear sentiment after the 2011 disaster. The protesters believe that the past months when Japan has survived without nuclear power is proof that it can be done. Musicians performed during the rally using electric instruments powered by huge solar panels. One of the performers was composer Ryuichi Sakamoto, who played his pieces created three years ago to mourn the more than 15,000 people who perished during the 2011 earthquake and tsunami. He emphasized, “The Fukushima accident continues today.”

Survey: Evacuees unsure about choice of residence
An NHK survey shows that more than half of evacuees affected by the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami in northeastern Japan are feeling unsure about their choice of new residence.
NHK conducted the survey in January among 2,878 evacuees from Iwate, Miyagi and Fukushima prefectures and received 1,201 answers.
Eighty-six percent of the respondents said they had decided on their new residence.
71 percent said they will go back to exactly where they lived before, or to other areas in their former communities. Fifteen percent answered that they will move to other municipalities in their home prefectures or elsewhere in other prefectures.
Forty-five percent of the respondents said they have no doubts about their decision. But 55 percent said they often or sometimes wonder whether their choice of residence was right.
Those who are feeling undecided were asked about what they miss most. Thirty-five percent said land, houses and family graves, while others mentioned bonds with neighbors, friends and acquaintances.
Forty-six percent of the respondents unsure about their choice were those who are planning to return to their hometowns.
Associate Professor Reo Kimura from the University of Hyogo says the survey shows that even 3 years after the disaster the evacuees have to choose from limited options for rebuilding their lives.
He added that both central and local governments should explain once more their reconstruction plans and visions to reassure people.

Japanese NPO aid for Chernobyl affected
Officials from a Japanese civic group that supports people affected by the 1986 nuclear accident at Chernobyl, Ukraine, say the current situation in the country is hampering their humanitarian activities.
The non-profit organization in Nagoya, central Japan, has been sending medical equipment and funds to its counterpart in Ukraine for 24 years. The aid is used to help workers who deal with the crippled power plant and to treat children suffering from radiation exposure.

Japan eyes joint research on Monju with France
Japanese government officials plan to work with their French counterparts in developing next-generation nuclear reactor technologies to reduce radioactive waste.
They are apparently aiming to use the nation’s troubled Monju fast-breeder reactor.
Engineers in France are developing the ASTRID prototype reactor, which is expected to begin operation around 2025. Both reactors are designed to reduce nuclear waste.
Sources say Japanese officials are preparing to reach a basic agreement with France in late April. This will be followed by a formal accord.

Kyodo, Jan. 14, 2014: Former Prime Minister Morihiro Hosokawa said Tuesday he will run in the upcoming Tokyo gubernatorial election with an antinuclear agenda after securing the backing of popular former Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi […] The move […] could have game-changing impact on the race for the helm of the Japanese capital […] “I have made my decision to run in the Tokyo governor election,” Hosokawa told reporters after meeting Koizumi. “I have a sense of crisis myself that the country’s various problems, especially nuclear power plants, are matters of survival for the country.” […] Koizumi indicated the main focus of the election will be whether to pursue nuclear power or not, calling the election “a war between the group that says Japan can grow with zero nuclear power plants” and the group that says it cannot. […]

Asahi Shimbun, Jan. 14, 2014: […] “I have a sense of crisis that various problems facing Japan today, especially the issue of nuclear power generation, will endanger the existence of our country,” Hosokawa said, explaining the reason for his candidacy. […] Koizumi said the Tokyo gubernatorial election will be a contest between pro- and anti-nuclear forces. “My belief is that Japan will be able to do without nuclear energy. Hosokawa also has the same belief. That is the biggest reason for my support of him,” he said. […] Koizumi told reporters, “I expressed my respects to Hosokawa from the heart. I will do my utmost so that Hosokawa wins the election.” Koizumi said the Tokyo gubernatorial election could have “the biggest influence ever on national politics.” “If the Tokyo metropolitan government shows that it can go without nuclear power generation, it will certainly be able to change Japan,” he said. Koizumi also said, “If Hosokawa becomes Tokyo governor, he will have a major influence that could shake national politics on the issues of energy and nuclear power generation.” […]

Wall St. Journal, Jan. 14, 2014: [Former Prime Ministers Hosokawa and Koizumi] are expected to stir up the gubernatorial race and bring the energy debate back into the national spotlight. That will likely dismay of the administration of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, which would rather not have the divisive issue become an election focal point. […] Mr. Hosokawa said […] “I have a sense of crisis that our nation’s survival is at stake over nuclear power.”

Protests Grow in Japan: “We Want to Bring Our Message to the World to Stop Nuclear Power Plants”

http://www.democracynow.org – Recent moves by the Japanese government to restart the country’s nuclear power plant facilities have been met by growing protests “I think this is a problem of the world, not just of Japan,” Kato Kaiko told Democracy Now! at a protest outside the Prime Minister’s private residence in Tokyo. She describes how there is increasing expectation that voters will decide which candidate to choose in the upcoming election based on their position on nuclear power.

Abe says pacifist constitution to change

Updated: 17:17, Wednesday January 1, 2014

Japan’s nationalist Prime Minister Shinzo Abe says the country’s pacifist post-World War II constitution that limits its military to self-defence could be amended by 2020.

In a new-year comment published in the conservative daily Sankei Shimbun on Wednesday, Abe predicted the constitution ‘will have been revised’ by 2020, when Tokyo hosts the Summer Olympics.

His comments come days after he enraged Asian neighbours and disappointed Washington by visiting a Tokyo shrine honouring the country’s war dead, including World War II leaders, seen abroad as a symbol of Japan’s militaristic past.

‘(By 2020), I think Japan will have completely restored its status and been making great contributions to peace and stability in the region and the world,’ he said.

He added that Japan’s elevated status could possibly help Asia become a ‘balanced and stable region’.

Abe took power a year ago in an election landslide as Japan faced China’s assertive military posture amid a territorial dispute over Tokyo-controlled islands.

A smouldering islet created by undersea volcanic eruptions off Japan’s Pacific coast has melded to a nearby island, the Japanese coastguard said Thursday.

Officials overflying the new landmass said it had merged at two points with Nishino-shima, an uninhabited volcanic island in the Ogasawara (Bonin) chain, some 1,000 kilometres (620 miles) south of Tokyo.

Two craters on the islet have been erupting “at an interval of 30 seconds to one minute,” spewing brown smoke about 100 metres (330 feet) high, a coastguard statement said.

Pale volcanic gas and ash-grey smoke are also oozing out.

The islet was first spotted on November 20, some 200 metres from Nishino-shima, which is estimated to be 10 million years old.

Volcanic island off coast of Japan TRIPLES IN SIZE after fresh undersea eruptions

A new volcanic island off the coast of Japan has tripled in size since it formed just over a month ago, experts have said.

The land mass, which has now been named Niijima, was first spotted on November 20 in the Ogasawara chain around 600 miles south of Tokyo.

Initially, scientists were unsure how long it would last because volcanic islets of that type tend to be reclaimed by the sea after a short time.

However, the island has actually expanded to 56,000 square metres (13.8 acres) – around three times its size – as a result of continuing eruptions from the volcano below.

Scroll down for video

Violent birth: This image shows the newly formed Niijima island (right) next to the uninhabited Nishino Shima land mass, a day after it first emerged from the sea off the coast of Japan around 600 miles south of Tokyo

Rapid expansion: This picture taken on December 20 shows how Niijima has grown to three times its size in the last month thanks to fresh volcanic eruptions below the surface of the Pacific Ocean

According to National Geographic, the Japan Meteorological Agency says it now rises to around 80ft above sea level and Japanese scientists believe it is large enough to last for several years, perhaps for good.

A NASA satellite image taken on December 8 shows Niijima next to its closest island, the uninhabited Nishino Shima which lies around 500m away.

The discoloration of the water caused by the volcanic minerals and white puffs of steam and gases can also be seen.

The mass of rock was forced from the sea following an eruption on November 20 in a region dubbed Ring of Fire.

Growing presence: This picture was taken on December 6, just over two weeks after the island formed

In this NASA satellite image from December 8, Niijima can be clearly seen next to the larger Nishino Shima

Smoke billows from a new islet off the coast of Nishino Shima, a small, uninhabited island in the Ogasawara chain off the coats of Tokyo. At that point, it was around 600ft in diameter

THE NEW ISLAND IN PAKISTAN

In September a similar new island appeared off the coast of Pakistan.

It was forced to the surface following an earthquake and was made up a mound of mud and rock 70ft high and 295ft wide/

The phenomenon on the coastline near the port of Gwadar caused astonishment when it emerged from the Arabian Sea but, like the new islet in Japan, experts said it was unlikely to last long.

Although the area regularly experiences earthquakes and eruptions, they are rarely as powerful as the latest one.

In fact, the forming of the new island is the first time the phenomenon has happened in almost 30 years.

Video footage showed smoke billowing from part of the ocean around the Ogasawara island chain and the Japanese coastguard later confirmed it was coming from the new islet.

This chain is made up of over 30 subtropical and tropical islands.

The islet is made up of volcanic lava and rocks forced from the ocean floor.

Volcanologists claim the temperature of the rocks could have been as high as 1,000C.

Govt. seeking fuel retrieval technologies
The Japanese government on Wednesday began to publicly solicit information on technologies that can safely remove nuclear fuel debris from the crippled Fukushima Daiichi plant.
In 2020 or later, Japan plans to start removing the melted fuel from the 3 reactors that suffered meltdowns in the March 2011 disaster.
The removal of the fuel debris is a core part of the work to decommission the plant, which will reportedly take 30 to 40 years.
On Tuesday, the International Research Institute for Nuclear Decommissioning, or IRID, explained the current plan to some 130 engineers and researchers at a briefing session in Tokyo.
The plan is to fill the reactor containment vessels with water to minimize workers’ exposure to radiation.
Institute officials said they are seeking information on ways to examine the condition of the melted fuel inside the reactors and containment vessels, which have complicated structures. They are also asking for ideas on ways to remove the fuel by remote control.
IRID managing director Kazuhiro Suzuki said he believes there are numerous technologies in the world that can be applied to this project.

***Proposals will be accepted at the IRID website through January 31st. The web address is: http://irid.or.jp/
Submission procedures are explained in both English and Japanese.

New safety rules for nuclear facilities introduced
Japan has introduced a new set of safety guidelines for nuclear fuel processing plants and other facilities handling radioactive materials.
The guidelines that took effect on Wednesday cover 248 facilities across Japan, including spent fuel reprocessing plants. Nuclear power plants are subject to another set of regulations.

TEPCO decides to decommission 2 more reactors
The operator of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant has officially decided to decommission the facility’s 2 reactors that escaped serious damage in the 2011 disaster.
Tokyo Electric Power Company, or TEPCO, made the decision at its board meeting on Wednesday. Four of the plant’s 6 reactors were crippled due to meltdowns or hydrogen explosions in their buildings.

French journalists inspect Fukushima Pref.
French journalists have toured Fukushima Prefecture to see how residents are tackling radiation contamination from the accident at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant.

AP: ‘Tritium rain’ to result from disposal of Fukushima contaminated water? Expert: You may be interested to know radioactive rainfall occurs around nuclear plants during normal operations (VIDEO)http://enenews.com/ap-tritium-rain-to…

IAEA ***NOT for distribution***: Molten core is suspected to have penetrated Fukushima containment vessel — Prime Minister on 3/11: We couldn’t be in Tokyo if melted fuel went through containment vessel (VIDEO)http://enenews.com/iaea-expert-molten…

CBS promotes Fukushima-area seafood; Better if it’s allowed to contain more radioactive waste? — CBS email to US Gov’t: The best way for NRC to calm Americans’ nuclear anxiety is to be interviewed by ’60 Minutes’http://enenews.com/cbs-promoting-seaf…

Please subscribe to my new channel: Missingsky102http://www.youtube.com/user/missingsk…
I have a copyright strike on this channel and I have been limited to 15 minute uploads on this account. I will be able to upload documentaries and special reports on 102.

IAEA demonstrates aerial radiation monitor
The International Atomic Energy Agency has demonstrated an unmanned aerial vehicle designed to measure radiation levels in areas too dangerous for humans to access.
The aircraft on Monday hovered over Fukushima City near the site of the 2011 nuclear accident.

TEPCO to cut power bills, restart nuclear plant
Tokyo Electric Power Company is drawing up a business plan to cut electricity rates by restarting all the reactors at a nuclear power plant in central Japan.
TEPCO raised the rates to cover its losses after the nuclear disaster at the Fukushima Daiichi plant in 2011. The increases averaged about 8.5 percent for households, and 17 percent for businesses.
But the plan TEPCO is drawing up includes reactivating all seven reactors at the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa plant in Niigata Prefecture over the next several years.

Seabed contamination research to start on Monday
Researchers plan to investigate radioactive contamination in the seabed off the coast of the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant.
This time, the research will cover about 700 kilometers, which is 5 times wider than the last test.

Jiji: No solution seen for Fukushima’s radioactive water — Kyodo: Toxic ocean leakage to go on into 2020s — Experts: “High potential for marine life and human health effects through ingestion over generations”http://enenews.com/jiji-no-solution-s…

2.35 micro Sv/h, Toride city office, sand of the parking lot, Dec. 2013
Published on Dec 15, 2013 By Birdhairjp
Toride city : population 110,000 : 45 km, 28 miles from the center of Tokyo : 180 km, 112 miles from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power planthttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8meGVg…

Asahi: Radiation levels spike to record high in Fukushima groundwater well nearby ocean — Trench failures to blame, says Tepco — Million times more strontium/beta-ray source than cesiumhttp://enenews.com/asahi-radiation-le…

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